Tweedaagse meeting "Interreg 2 zeeën" project Qualify.

QUALIFY is a running European project under the Interreg 2Seas program investigating adhesively bonded hybrid joints for use in the maritime and off-shore industry.

At present, there are no certification guidelines to orient the naval industry when certifying new designs using hybrid assemblies (adhesively bonded, composite to metal connections), which limits their application to secondary structures. In QUALIFY, a multi-scale testing plan will be implemented by a consortium of 11 partners, to provide reliable insights into the long-term performance of hybrid joints operating in demanding marine environments. This will ultimately enable the increased use of adhesively bonded hybrid structures in primary structures in shipbuilding, and will also generate spin-offs to other industries.

QUALIFY will remove the barriers that currently prevent the application of adhesively bonded structures in primary structures, through an innovative combination of tests and techniques:

Long term prediction models on the durability of the adhesive material and composite-to-metal joint configuration;